Baden Revolution

The Baden Revolution (April 1848-23 July 1849) was a regional uprising by German nationalists in the Grand Duchy of Baden in southern Germany. The revolt began as a result of liberal agitation led by Friedrich Hecker, who demanded the emancipation of the serfs, the abolition of the feudal system, and the adoption of a constitution. On 4 March 1848, a peasants' revolt broke out in North Baden, and Hecker and Gustav Struve proclaimed a provisional republic on 12 April 1848. Hessian and Badener troops crushed the uprising at the Scheideck Pass on 20 April, but the revolution continued to fight on, spreading to other German states. The revolutionaries fought determinedly until July 1849, when the provisional government was forced to surrender at Rastatt. The Baden Revolution had failed, and many of its leaders fled abroad, including to the United States.